Craven Manor(63)

Something large flew through the room’s open door. It slammed into the shadow creature, and Daniel caught flashes of talons and beady, black eyes. Bran. The impact scraped him across the floor, digging glass shards into his arm, but the monster finally released his shoulder.

Bran and Eliza tumbled across the floor. The crow was massive, larger than Daniel, but Eliza had grown, as well. Her body seemed more liquid than solid as the smoke-like shadows coiled around her. Daniel found it hard to make sense of what he was seeing, except for the gnashing teeth and white eyes.

The monster leapt for the open window but didn’t pass through. She rebounded as though the glass pane were still intact, and a whistle-like shriek made Daniel flinch. The salt line had contained her.

Bran leapt towards Eliza. Massive wings buffeted Daniel as his claws clutched the shadow monster. They slammed into the wardrobe. The wood was rotten, and the structure collapsed on top of them. A dark shape exploded out of the fragmented boards. It darted across the room and through the still-open door, around Daniel’s half-completed salt line.

The enormous crow flapped once then dove towards the floor, where it seemed to crumple in on itself. The tattered black feathers became dusty fur, and the small black cat stood in the crow’s place. It blinked at Daniel then leapt through the door in pursuit of the black monster.

Daniel, breathless and dizzy, leaned against the wall below the window as he struggled to replenish his oxygen. The bedroom seemed unnervingly still now that the warring shape-shifters had left. He touched his fingers to where he’d been bitten. Flecks of blood dotted his arm, but it came from where glass shards had nicked him. The bite had felt agonizingly hard, but it hadn’t broken the skin. Dark bruising spread from the teeth marks instead.

She’s strong and fast. Daniel tightened his uninjured hand over the talisman as he lurched to his feet. Bran would need the holy water and silver if he had any hope of winning against Eliza. Sounds of a fight came from the staircase, where screeching and beating wings combined into an eerie tempest. Daniel snatched the candelabrum off the dresser to light his way and ran down the first flight of stairs.

The first landing was empty, but as he turned its corner, he saw shadows dancing through the strokes of moonlight that striped the foyer floor. He leapt the last three steps and felt his breath freeze in his throat.

Bran and Eliza tangled in the centre of the foyer floor, their inky-black forms blending together. The giant crow was trapped on its back, its wings beating futilely and talons twitching. The shadow monster tore out clumps of feathers. The plumage scattered among the dead leaves and swirled in eddies as the crow’s wings fluttered. Each beat was weaker than the one before.

“Hey!” Daniel plunged his hand into the bag of salt as he ran towards the fight.

Eliza raised her head. Black liquid dripped off her bared fangs. Daniel threw the salt at her. The granules glittered in the candlelight as they arced through the air, and when they hit the monster, its snarl transformed into a howl. Plumes of black smoke burst out of her form as though she had been singed. She scrambled back, her head thrashing.

Daniel skidded to a halt at Bran’s side. The crow flapped a final time, then its wings drooped to its sides. Daniel dropped the candelabrum beside Bran then lifted the talisman in one hand and a new handful of salt in the other.

Eliza circled at the edge of the candlelight. He could see nothing of her except the glint of murderous eyes and the frothing saliva dripping from her jaws. Daniel bared his own teeth, daring her to try again. Her eyes flicked between the salt and the talisman. She snapped her jaws then leapt away, towards the front door.

Daniel followed her movements and drew a sharp breath. He’d shut the door before pouring salt in front of it, but it now stood propped open. He ran past the massive crow and threw the fistful of salt, hoping it would be enough, but Eliza flattened herself close to the ground as she darted under it. She slipped through the door and disappeared into the night.

“No—how—” Daniel looked down. The salt he’d painstakingly spread across the threshold was smudged. By who? Bran? That doesn’t make sense—

He turned to the scene of the fight. The crow had transformed back into the small black cat. It looked horribly forlorn as it lay in a ring of shredded feathers and dark blood. Daniel took a step closer, but Bran wasn’t moving.

“Lookie here, I finally found you.”

The voice came from behind him. Daniel twisted. He was just in time to stop Kyle’s fist from connecting with his head. He grasped the wrist, holding Kyle at arms’ length, and stared at him with growing horror.

Kyle looked ghastly. He wore his jacket over the hospital pyjamas, which were stained and torn from travelling through the forest. His hair was a mess, and unshaven stubble covered his sagging cheeks. He carried a yellow plastic jug in his spare hand. When he exhaled, his breath reeked of alcohol.

Daniel grimaced. “Damn it! You can’t be here! You opened the door, didn’t you? You must have broken the salt line.”

“The what now?” Kyle took a step closer.

Daniel backed up.

Kyle tried, and failed, to twist his hand free as his bloodshot eyes narrowed. “Look, I don’t want any problems, you hear me? I’m just here to claim what’s mine.”

Daniel refused to release Kyle’s wrist as the man forced him to back up another step. “You’re insane for coming back. What are you after? Your backpacks? I left them in the corner by the door.”